​Rob joined King Abdullah University of Science and Technology in February 2019 as Director, Finance, Procurement and Supply Chain Services. In December 2019 he became Interim Chief Financial Officer, and was appointed Chief Financial Officer in May 2020.In March 2023, Rob was appointed Interim Chief Administrative Officer, overseeing all the financial, business and administrative functions at KAUST.  

Rob has a wealth of experience in financial strategy, leadership, change management, commercial development and stakeholder management in the Higher Education and Research Sector. In addition to leading financial functions, he has significant experience of procurement, risk, insurance, estates and IT functions.

Before moving to Saudi Arabia Rob was part of the Executive Team of Staffordshire University. Rob joined in March 2017 as Chief Financial Officer, becoming Deputy Chief Executive in November of that year. During his time at Staffordshire, Rob was a key part of the University's transformation programme, with a cross University remit of ensuring competitiveness, commercial focus, and financial sustainability. Notably, Rob initiated and led the plan and implementation of a London Digital Institute for the University, designed to increase overseas recruitment for niche programmes in e-sports, cyber security, AI and games design.
 
The large majority of Rob's career has been spent within Higher Education, having moved from Aston University where he was the Director of Finance (including Risk and Procurement). The team at Aston were proud to be finalists for the national Times Higher Education Management and Leadership Awards 2016 "Finance Team of the Year".

Prior to Aston, Rob held senior finance roles at the University of Birmingham, one of the UKs largest institutions, which were largely focused on financial sustainability and business planning, partnering services and research management. In addition, Rob has had spells working within Further Education and the NHS.
 
Rob is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Management Accountants (FCMA). In 2016, Rob completed an Executive MBA and was also invited to join the prestigious international Beta Gamma Sigma Society. Rob has been a director of a number of University spin-out companies and has been involved in multiple external engagements during his career.